Appointed midshipman 21 January 1840, Lowry in the Mexican War and was a member of Commodore Matthew C. Perry’s expedition to Japan in 1855. He served with distinction in the Civil War, commanding George W. Peabody in the Hatteras Expedition of August 1861, serving as executive officer in Brooklyn during the capture of New Orleans and the first attack on Vicksburg (April–June 1862), and commanding Sciota in extensive river operations. His last command was Naval Station, New London.
He died at Brooklyn Naval Hospital 25 November 1880.
